A New Normal

That’s definitely an oxymoron. But it’s also my life at the moment. My husband started a new job this morning.

After seven months of unemployment, followed by a little over a year at a job he was extremely uncomfortable with (cleaning up “stuff” in an emergency department is NOT a good fit for a germophobe), he’s on to a new chapter. Hopefully a better one.

I felt like a mom sending her little one off to his first day of school this morning. Happy, but a bit worried.

This new job creates huge changes for me, too. His old job was steady three to eleven. It took a while to get used to having him around in the morning. I had to come up with a strategy to get my writing done with Hubby underfoot. It was a practice in patience. I learned to tune a lot out. I also learned to close the door to my writing cave. But then, after he left, I had the afternoon and evening all to myself. I admit I liked it.

This new job involves Hubby working all three shifts. This week, while he’s training, he’s on daylight. Back to setting the alarm.

So now, my quiet time is the morning. I’ve already hit the treadmill. I don’t have to stop everything to cook dinner at noon. Instead, I can take a quick lunch break and get back to work.

Writing-wise, this is much better.

The thing is… I’m just not used to it. It’ll take me a while to adjust and settle into a new routine. By then, he’ll probably be back to 3 to 11. Or midnight shift.

Normal may not be normal for a very long time.